I raise the issue of the withdrawal of professional services by barristers practising criminal law. I acknowledge the presence of Seán Guerin, chair of the criminal state bar committee of the Bar Council, along with other members of the profession. I know the Taoiseach is acutely aware of this issue as it has been raised by other members of the Fine Gael Party. He will be aware that there has been a 40% cut in these barristers' fees over the past 20 years. There was a partial restoration of 10% following the origin…

There is a commitment in the programme for Government in relation to sanctions for contempt of court violations against social media companies. The Taoiseach will recall that the last time I was a backbencher, I brought forward a Private Member's Bill regarding contempt of court. It is important that we prevent any conduct that abuses, prejudices or obstructs the administration of justice. It is vital that we move this forward and fulfil our commitment in the programme for Government. It has been on a statutory foo…

I raise the Family Courts Bill, which, as the Taoiseach knows, was published without pre-legislative scrutiny. It is well-intentioned but short-sighted in a certain respect, particularly with regard to moving divorces and separations, etc., into the District Court. Not only the Family Lawyers Association of Ireland and the Bar of Ireland but also Safe Ireland and Barnardos have concerns, particularly around the erosion of the good work the Department of Justice, the Taoiseach and the Minister, Deputy McEntee, have …

I thank the Deputy for raising this important topic. It is important to note at the outset that speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and physiotherapy services for children with disabilities predominantly fall under the auspices of the Minister for children while the Minister for Health retains oversight of primary care services and mental health support, which also falls under the remit of the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte. Following today’s Topical Issue debate, I will consult all three Minister…

I thank the Deputy. I appreciate his concern for the school. As I mentioned, Le Chéile National School is in the DEIS urban band 1. It is one of Limerick's newest primary schools. It opened on 1 September 2015. It has an assigned psychologist and I understand from my conversations within the Department the NCSE has visited the school on a number of occasions. Both a SENO and an adviser visited in November 2023 as part of an SNA review and these visits were used as an opportunity to look at all the school's needs an…

I thank the Deputy for the question. This is something that the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, and Senator Joe O'Reilly have brought to my attention as well. Deputy Carthy is correct when he says there is no special school at present in County Monaghan. He mentioned the special school in County Cavan, which I understand is full. However, there are several special schools in the environs of Monaghan. From my conversations with the CEO of the NCSE, John Kearney, I am assured that provision will be made for all children …

I thank the Deputy. I concur with much of what he says. Of course we want children to be placed appropriately. If there are children in County Monaghan who do not have a special school place, we need to find them a special school place. I can say, from my direct conversation with the NCSE, that there will be placements for those children in September 2024. I have been assured of that. In regard to the future, I mentioned the forward planning. There is active engagement on this. There is active consideration in rela…

It is under consideration. If I can just correct the record, I should have said that the NCSE was given €13 million for the 160 staff.

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. The school building programme is not under my remit. It is under the remit of the Minister but I am happy to take this Topical Issue debate today. If I had known about the three schools, I might have had information relating to them. However, it is important to say that since 2020, the Department has invested in the region of €4.3 billion in our schools throughout the country involving the completion of over 800 school building projects, of which 16 are in the Dublin 9 an…

Those are important points. As I said, the planning and building unit is under the remit of the Minister but I will bring it to its attention. I am glad I did not have to use the section 37a mechanism and that, in the main, schools have been very welcoming in terms of opening ASD classes and embracing that difference for children with additional needs on which I commend them. Therapies and supports are a matter for the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, but I will speak to her about that. There are 41,500 staff wh…

Will you stop shouting?

Shouting.

I thank the Senator for her question. I am taking this Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Humphreys, who sends her apologies to the Senator for being unable to be present to take the Commencement matter herself. The Department of Rural and Community Development has policy and legislative responsibility for two areas relating to dogs - the Control of Dogs Acts 1986 to 2014 and the Dog Breeding Establishments Act 2010. Legislative and policy responsibilities in r…

The Department is reviewing the existing legislative provisions under the Dog Breeding Establishments Act and the Control of Dogs Act to take into account the recommendations from the report of the working group on the control of dogs, the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and consultation with stakeholders and experts in the field, which was the outcome of the public consultation undertaken by the Department in 2019. Updates to the existing legislation will be required and it is propo…

The climate action plan does set out ambitious targets to retrofit the equivalent of 500,000 homes to a building energy rating of B2-cost optimal and the installation of 400,000 heat pumps in existing homes to replace older, less efficient heating systems by the end of 2030. The national retrofit plan sets out the Government's approach to achieving these targets. Fairness, universality, and customer centricity are three of the key principles of the national retrofit plan. In line with these principles, the plan rec…

I acknowledge the Senator's comment on the reduction of time from 26 months to 20 months. It is progress and I think there will be more progress as time goes on. I note he welcomed some of the measures that have been put in place, including around staffing, which hopefully will help. It is important to note there are other schemes as well. Some 700 approved housing body and low-income homes were upgraded under the national home energy upgrade scheme and the community energy grant scheme. I appreciate the points the…

I thank the Senator for her question which, as she pointed out, I am taking on behalf the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Members will be aware of the urban regeneration and development fund, URDF, which is a flagship element of Project Ireland 2040. It was established to support more compact and sustainable development through the regeneration and rejuvenation of Ireland’s five cities and other large towns in line with the objectives of the national planning framework and the national developm…

We have seen something of a transformation of Francis Street recently, with fantastic public realm works completed. Using the further funds under the URDF, Dublin City Council will be in a position to carry out essential works on the Iveagh Markets building, which is a focal point of the street. The works now proposed to be carried out by Dublin City Council are not to be confused with those required to allow the building to reopen for use. The current project scope is limited to essential stabilisation repair work…

I thank the Senator for raising this extremely important issue. I have noted the contents of his contribution. The current model of allocation was commenced in 2017 on foot of a 2014 NCSE report. The model aimed to move away from a diagnosis-led system of allocation to an identified-need-driven system. This was to provide greater certainty to schools about the additional teaching allocation they would receive. A key attribute was that it provided schools with a greater level of autonomy in managing and deploying th…

We obviously do not want a situation where a school feels its needs are not being met in order for it to look after children with additional needs. We want to give the supports. The NCSE is there and the school should speak to it. If there are to be future enrolments, of course its allocation will be reviewed. Complex needs are now taken into account in two ways. First, those students who are performing at the lower levels in standardised tests, which indicate the greatest level of need for additional learning supp…